Ration



w I H. ENDERS. .ZERO SETTING DEVICE FOR CALCULATING MACH|NES.'

Patented Apr -z5, 1922."

APPLICATION FILEDJUNE 14, 1920.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1- ATTORNEY.

Patented 125, 1922.

2. SHEETS-SHEET 2 INVENTOI Q.

APPLICATION H'LED JUNE 14, 1920.

mm STATES" PATENT OFFICE.-

HUGO ENDE'RS, or LEHIGHTON, PENNSYLVANIA, AssIGNoR TO THE LEHIGH coaro- RATION, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION or DELAWARE.

ZERO-SETTING- DEVICE FOR CALCULATING MACHINES.

Application filed June 14,

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HUGO ENoERs, a citizen of the Republic-of Germany, residing at lmhighton, in the county of Carbon and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Zero- Setting Devices for Calculating Machines, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to calculating machines, and particularly to devices bywhich the register or reckoning wheels of a cal- Y culator, cash register, or other like machine are returned to zero or cleared out after a calculating operation has been performed.

The general object of this invention is to provide improved means for this purpose which is of a very simple character, which is positive in. its operation, which may bereadily 4 applied or used with calculating and like machines of different characteristics, and which may be caused to return all of the digit wheels orreckoning wheels in a series to a zero positionby a single actuation of a pivoted lever. I v A further object is to provide a construction of this character which is extremely compact and in which only a'relatively Short stroke is required in order to return the digit wheels to their zero posi tion, andin which multiplying gearing is used between the resetting lever and the shaft carrying the digit wheels so as to secure a full and complete revolution of this shaft-upon a relatively slight movement of the resetting lever.

A further object is to provide a construction of this character which takes up but little room and which is not liableto get out of order.

Other objects will appear in the course of the following description.

In the dra\vings,'wlie1'ein I have illustrated one practicalembodiment of my invcntion, and in which. similar reference characters designate similar parts Figure 1 is a perspective view of a calculating machine having my attachment applied thereto;

Figure 2 is a vertical sectional v ew through the movable carriage and housing supporting the number registering wheels,

the section being taken on the line 3-3 of Specification of Letters Patent. Patent d A 25 1922 1920. Serial No. 388,852.

showing a modified arrangement of the spring and pawl therefor.

Referring to these drawings. 10 designates the casing or housing, which is mount--- ed upon a suitable base and which encloses a series of reckoning wheel 11 which are designed to indicate numbers in the problem being calculated. In the ordinary calculating machine there are two series of these wheels indicating respectively one of the factornumbcrs in the problem to be calculated and the product number. I have illustrated one series of whecls but it is to be understood that this device is equally applicable. to the other series of wheels, or to any construction wherein it is desired to return. a series of wheels to a zero position after a differential actuation of the several wheels of the series. The front wall of the casing 10 is provided, usual, with sight openings through which the numbers on the reckoning wheel 11 may be observed.

The digit or reckoning wheels 11 are loosely mounted for relative rotation on a shaft 12. This shaft atone of its ends is slidingly mountedfor rotation in a bearing member 13 which shown as extending upward from the base of the machine, and this shaft 12 projects beyond this bearing member. The opposite end of the shaft 12 is mounted in a sleeve bearing 14 which extends through the end wall of the casing or through an indented portion 15 of this end notch or recess therein formed .with a cam I face 1'? with which theprojccting end of a transverse pin 18 coacts so that as the shaft 12 is rotated in one direction. it will ride up the cam face 17 and as a consequence the shaft will be shifted longitudinally.

A spring 12 acts to shift the shaft 12 l gear wheels 40 '11 are in a certain position namely at zero 450 slid able longitudinally 555 as radial to the center of the to being radial and pletion of a resetting OPUITntlOIl.

lflach of the reckoning or dig-it wheels 11 is illustrated as Etlll'llllili in iorm and at tached to one face of each wheel is the toothed disk or gear wheel .19. with which toothed disks the rotation transmitting To the opposite face of the wheel 11v a metal disk or plate is attached and loosely surrounds the shaft 9. stud 21 projects loin-- l5 gatudinally of the shaft from the horror face of this plate so that in effect this send 2]. is attached to and rotates with the wheel '11, there being one of these studs 21 for each of the wheels 11. D11 the shaft 12 are provided 20 the spaced studs or eeth 22. which in one position of said shaft are adapted to coast with the respective studs 19 of the wheels 11. These studs 22 are bevelled upon one face. It will be obvious now that in one position of the shaft 12, the studs 22 will be out of engagement with the studs or teeth 20, and that when the shaft is shifted longitudinally to the position shown in .ll igure the teeth 22 will he in engagen'ie t with '30 the studs or teeth 21. and it will he ohvio is alsothat this longitudinal shifting of the shaft is secured by the rotation of the shaft 12, which will cause the pin 18 to ride up the cam face 17, and that when this has been 85 achieved, the teeth 21' and 22 will he in engagement with each other and the rotation of the shaft 12 will cause a rotation of all of the wheels 11.

It will be understood that when the wheels I I n 7 each lug 22 will pist slide back of the lug 21 when the shaft 12 is rotated and therefore,

not rotate the wheels 11. Only the Wheels 11 which are not in zero position when the 45 shaft 12 is rotated will he engaged. by the lugs and brought back to zero.

For the purpose of securing this rotation of the shaft 12. l mount loosely upon the shaft- 12 a gear wheel 23. 'l lhe shaft 12 through '5 gear wheel. This gear wheel is cleft for approximately half its diameter to provide a sectorshaped recess 25 in the periphery of the gear wheel, the bottom of this recess being shown shaft and openmay of course. upon the sin-face of the shaft. The shaft 12 at the point wnere it is exposed within the groove or recess forn '21 ratchet notch 2th one wall of graduallv on l Q l as lllilS'tIlltOla mos.

pinions of the machine engage.-

upwardly projecting handle from the "pawl is coiled around a pin extending across the groove or recess 25, the outer extremity of the spring then resting upon the adjacent end wall of this groove. lhus the spring will force the free end of the pawl into engagement with the peripln ery of the shaft 12 and, of course, into engagernent with the ratchet tooth 26 when this ratchet tooth 26 1S cou'icidei'itwith the pawl.

PllVOttlll) mounted upon a pivot pin, shaft or equivalent element 31 is a sector-shaped lever, designated generally 32, which has an 33 which er;- tends out throughthe slot 2%: formed in the face of the housing 10. This lever carries upon one face the arcuate rack 35 having inwardly projecting teeth, and loosely mounted upon a supporting bearing pin as is a pinion 37 which meshes with the teeth of the gear wheel 23. but which slightly smaller in diameter than the gear wheel 23. 'lhis pinion is circumferentially grooved, the groove being designated 38, and coinciding with the groove or recess 25 in the wheel 23.

'llhe purpose of this groove 35% is to accoinmodate the pawl 27 when the latter is thrown outward beyond the circumference of the gear wheel 23. The rack 35 meshes with the pinion 3'7. and this pinion 37 constitutes merely an idler transmitting the mohandle is drawn in the direction of the arrow in Figure 2, the rack 35 will cause a rotation of the pinion 37, and this pinion. operating on the gear wheel 23, will cause a rotation of this gear wheel in a clockwise direction and a rotation of the sl aft in a clockwise direction. --llpon a release of the handle 33 and the downward movement of the arcuate rack 35, a reverse rotation will he communicated to the wheels Ill and hul the pawl. 27 will ride o er the face of the shaft 12 and no reverse l'l connnunica ted to the shaft. on the le 32 has arrived in its initial position with the raclc stopped from further movement by the base of the'niachinc or by any suitable stop. the pawl 27 will ugaiiz. one 1 in the notch it'll. that is engasjvd a aiusl the ratchet ation will he lltl (ill

and this will brin the teeth 22 into engage ment with the teeth 21, thus operatively connecting the shaft to the counting or calculating wheels 11 so. that all of the wheels will be reversely rotated a complete rotation, which will bring the wheels to a zero position, that is a position in which the zero figure on ,each wheel will appear at the sight opening in the casing. It will, of course, be obvious that the upward movement of the rack 35 is just sufficient to effect one complete rotation of the shaft 12, at which time the zero figure on the peripheral face of each wheel will appear in the corresponding sight opening. "Vhen the pull on the handle 33 is relaxed, the spring '39 will, of-course, draw the rack 35 back to its initial position but withoutaffecting the shaft 12. The teeth 21 on the wheels 11 are bevelled on one side and these teeth allow any'pin or lug 22 to slip past its corresponding pin or lug 21 if the corresponding wheel 11 is 'at' zero when shaft 12 is rotated, but when a rotation of the shaft is completed, the spring 12 shifts the shaft axially to its normal. position. A coiled spring 29 may be used in place of the spring 29 illustrated in Figure 5, as shown in Figure 8, the pawl 27 being changed in form to coact with the coiled or spiral spring 29. It is to be noted that the ratchet notch. 26 which constitutes a ratchettooth on the shaft is of suflicient length as to permit the shaft to have longitudinal movement without lisconnectingthe shaft 12 from its engagement with this pawl. It will be seen that with this construction, the' resetting operation may be 'very quickly effected, as only a single outward movement is necessary on the handle 33 of lever 32. Furthermore, the mounting and arrangement of the several elements within the casing 10 is such as to necessitate no material alterations in the present case construction. The various parts are extremely simple and it is to be particularly noted that they cannot become displaced and will not require frequent repair. Thus-the pawl 27 is held from any lateral movement bytheside walls of the groove25. The spring 29 or29 is also held from any lateral movement by the side walls of the groove. When the pawl is thrown out and the free end of it rides upon the periphery of the shaft 12, the body of the pawl will project beyond the periplr cry of the wheel 23, but this projection of the pawl is accommodated by the annular groove 38 in the wheel 37. p

It will be seen that the gears23 and 37 are held securely in place and in proper align ment with eachother by being disposed between the wall 13 or bearing member and the lever 32, which, in turn, is disposed against a wall 41 extending upwardly in the case. The rack is relatively wide, as are the gear wheels 37 and 23, so that there is ,no danger of the teeth breaking either on the rack or registering wheels 'nite character, it will he understood that the parts shownin Figure 1 are merely illustrative of ah application of my resetting -device and that the present invention is not limited to use in connection with any specific'type of machine. It will further be understood that while I have disclosed a preferred embodiment of my construction, yet various changes -might be made therein in the form, construetion and arrangement of the several parts as may be fairly embodied within the spirit and scope of the invention as claimed.

lVhile I have heretofore described a machine having a single shaft 12 and a single lever 32, these calculating machines 'are ordinarily provided with two sets of number registering wheels 11, each mounted upon ashaft 12, one shaft being disposed to one side of the middle of the machine and the other at the other side of the middle of the machine. Such an arrangement is illustrated in Figure 1, and in this case there is a separate lever 33 for each series of number registering wheels. Inasmuch as this is a common arrangement of registering wheels in calculating machines of this character, I do not thinlc it necessary to describe this arrangement in detail. Suffice it to say that the shafts which carry the number are mounted upon a sliding carriage so that the number registering wheels may be shifted with relation to. the actuating wheels which, when shifted, rotate the number carrying wheels or disks 1 Y l I claim':

1. A mechanism including a shaft, a wheel loose on the shaft, the wheelhaving a recess extending through it from the exterior of the wheel parallel to the sides of the wheel and intersecting said shaft, a pawl carried in the recess and pivoted to the wheel and engaging the shaft upon a rotation of the wheel in one direction but riding freely over the shaft upon a rotation in the other"directiou,- and actuating means operativcly connected to said wheel to rotate it.

' 2. A mechanism including a shaft, a gear wheel loose on the shaft and having a groove extending inward from the exterior of the wheel parallel to the sides of the gear wheel the said groove andheld from lateral move ,1 i Kai gall i ment by the walls thereof and engaging the shaft upon a rotation in one direction but riding freely on the shaft upon a rotation in the opposite direction, a pinion engaglng the first named gear wheel and peripherally grooved to receive the pawl when the pawl moves outward, and means for rotating said pinion in either direction.

3. In a calculating -Ii'121Cl1lIfl, a rotatable and axially movable shaft, a series of digit wheels loosely mounted on said shaft, the wheels and shaft having means to coac' in one position of said shaft and cause the rotation of said wheels with the shaft, a resetting means for the digit wheels including a gear wheel loosely mounted upon the shaft and through which the shaft slides, means for operatively engaging the gear wheel with the shaft upon a rotation of the gear wheel in one direction but operatively disengaging the gear wheel from the shaft upon a rotation of the gear wheel in the opposite direction, said means acting in all axially adjusted positions of the shaft, a pinion en gaging said gear wheel, a manually shiftable rack engaging said pinion, and means operable upon 'such rotation of the shaft forinitially imparting a limited axial movement thereto to position the coactin means on- L b said shaft and the digit wheels into operative engagement with each other.

4:. In a calculating machine, a rotatable and axially movable shaft, a series of digit wheels loosely mounted on the shaft, the wheels and the shaft having means to coact in one position of said shaft and cause a rotation of the wheels with the shaft, a resetting means for the digit wheels including means operable upon an initial rotation of the shaft for imparting a limited axial movement thereto to position the coacting means on said shaft and the digit wheels for operative engagement with each other, said. shaft at one end being formed with a longitudinally extending ratchet notch, a gear wheel loosely mounted on the shaft over said ratchet notch and through which gear wheel the shaft is axially movable, said gear wheel being held from axial movement with the shaft and being formed with a recess extending inward from the peripheral face of the gear wheel and intersecting the shaft, a pawl pivotally mounted in said recess and coacting with the notch in the shaft in all axially shifted positions of the shaft, a spring dis-- posed in said recess and urging the pawhinto engagement with the shaft, a pinion engaging the first named gear wheel, and a pivotcd lever having an arcuate cl; engaging the pinion and having ahandle wherelry the level may be nuinipulated.

Til

5. in a. calculating machine, a: rotatable and axially movable shaft, :1 series of digit wheels loosely mounted on the shaft, the wheels and theshaft having means to coact in one position of said shaft and cause a. ro tation of the wheels with the shaft, a resetting means for the digit wheels including means operable upon an initial rotation of the shaft for imparting a limited axial movement "thereto to position the coac'ting means on said shaft and the digit wheels for operative engagement with each other, said shaft at one end being formed with. a longitudinally extending atchet notch, a gear wheel loosely mounted on the shaft over said ratchet notch and through which gear wheel the shaft is axially movable, said ear wheel being held from axial movement the shaft andbeing formed with a recess extending inward from the peripheral face of the gear wheel and intersecting the shaft, a pawl pivotally mounted in said recess and coacting with the notch in the shaft in all axially shifted positions of the shaft, a spring disposed in said and urging the pawl into engagement with the shaft. a pinion engaging the first named gear wheel and having acircumferential groove to accommodate the projection of said pawl when it is shifted outward, and a pivoted lever having an arcuate rack engaging the pinion and having a handle whereby the lever may be manipulated.

6. In a calculating machine, a rotatable and axially movable shaft, a series of digit wheels loosely mounted on said shaft, said wheels and the shaft having means, to coact in one position of said shaft and cause a rotation of the wheels with the shaft, means for causing an axial movement of the shaft in a direction to cause the engagement of said digit wheels with the shaft including a cam and a member engaging the am and bearing thereon and carried by the shaft, and means for rotating said shaft in one direction including a gear wheel loosely mounted on the shaft and in which the shaft is slidingly mounted, means carried by said. gear wheel for engaging the shaft for common rotation upon a movement of the gear whccl in one direction but said gear wheel moving freely upon the shaft upon a rotation of the gear wheel in the: other direction, said means being dispose l within the gear "wheel, and an actuating lever opcratively engaging said gear wheel to cause its rotation in either direction, and means yieldingly urging said lever to aninitial position.

' n aturc. 

